TalesFromTheTrails.com

Sugarloaf South, Garrison NY

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 15:59:00 +0000

Happy Holidays fellow Ramblers. Today's hike, Sugarloaf South in Garrison, NY just a few mins up the road from Bear Mountain. To be honest this wasn't the greatest of hikes. The trail was not marked well, not many highlights on the path, and the views were a bit obstructed. There is a really cool Mansion at the top of the mountain called Castle Rock, only problem is that it's on private property and you can't get close to it at all. If you are up in the Hudson Highland area there are better hikes to check out but I am still glad I was able to go and check another hike off the list. It's an in and out 3 mile hike and should take you about 2 1/2 hours. When you are close to the top it gets very steep and if you look off to to the skyline you get a good view of West Point. A few pics of the journey are below. Enjoy!

Pine Knob Loop Trail, Sharon, CT

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 01:34:00 +0000

Yesterday was the PERFECT fall day in Connecticut to go hiking. The destination was Pine Knob Loop Trail in Sharon, CT. The trail head was off Route 7 about 20 mins north of Kent, CT. This moderate 2.6 mile loop hike had some decent elevation climbs, roaring brooks, and two spectacular viewing spots that looked down on the Housatonic Valley. Total hike time was about an hour and 45 minutes with a few quick breaks along the way. Definitely a hike I would recommend. Enjoy the slide show below.

Mattabesett Trail & Mount Higby 10-09-2011

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 23:04:00 +0000

It's about damn time! FINALLY got out on the trails, it's been a long time coming. We decided on a nice warm up hike up to Mount Higby in Middletown, CT. The Mattabesett Trail is a decent day hike, not that challenging, but very cool views as you can see from the movie below. The one drawback is that this is not a loop hike, you head up the mountain, check out the scenery then head back down. Guidas Restaurant is a great spot to finish off the day. I didn't take enough pics to add music, but at the end you will see a short movie of me not being very smart. See ya on the trails!

Warrior Dash Windham, NY

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 02:11:00 +0000

Whats up Ramblers??? Been a long ass time since my last post. Haven't done much hiking this summer, but I am looking to step it up this fall. In the meantime check out the Warrior Dash we did today. If you haven't done this before then...DO IT! Fun, challenging (and dirty) day. Two of the main organizers are Warrior Dash and Spartan Race. Get a crew together and make some memories!

See you guys in the fall!

Lime Rock Park Grand-Am Memorial Day Classic

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 01:34:00 +0000

Now that was a memorial Memorial Day! First time visit to Lime Rock Park in Lime Rock, CT.
What a great experience. This was my first auto racing event, and it will definitely not be my last. Lime Rock Park is very fan friendly. Complete access to the cars and drivers, plus you can basically sit wherever you want to view the race. The only gripes I had were that the PA system is useless and the scoreboard is so outdated and located in a horrible location where it can barely be seen. Bottom line is that it's very hard to know who is leading the race unless you check online from your smartphone. It was a great day, and great weather (I have the sun burn to prove it). Check out the photo slide show and video highlights below.

Peace!

Taming the Lion's Head. Salisbury, CT

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 02:11:00 +0000

Spring Oh Spring where art thou Spring? It is still barely 45 degree up here in CT but that didn't stop us from hitting the trails this past Sunday. This weekend's destination, Lion's Head in Salisbury, CT. It's a pretty short hike (less than two miles) so I would only suggest it if you live local. Getting to the top of Lion's Head is not that difficult but it is steep at some points. Part of the trail intersects with the Appalachian Trail, which is kinda cool. After a 536 foot climb the view from the Lion's Head is really nice, especially on a crisp sunny day like Sunday. A new TalesFromTheTrails feature this year will be trail rankings. Yours truly, The Wandering Poet, will give each hike 1-4 blazes based on how much I liked the hike. Ratings will be mostly based on the hikes challenge vs. payoff ratio. So if it's really steep and grueling but has a lot of excitement along the way (great views, creatures, big foot sightings, etc) then a hike will rate high. If there is not much going on, then it's gonna get gonged. With that being said I give the Lion's Head 2 out of 4 Blazes. Short hike, no creature sightings (other than assorted dogs), but very nice views once at the top. See for yourself in the picture gallery below!

Devil's Den Preserve, Weston CT

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:47:00 +0000

Yes it's been ages, but TalesFromTheTrails is back in business for 2011! Enough was enough, I had to get out there today. We are finally cracking the mid 50's in CT so that was good enough for me to hit the woods. Today's visit, Devil's Den Preserve in Weston, CT. This hike was basically a 3 mile ramble in the woods. Very easy and leisurely. A good place to bring the little yutes. No creatures today, no crazy cliffs, just a chance to get some nice fresh air. The main highlight of the trip was when I came across some rusted pieces of an old sawmill that was used in the late 1800s. Other than that, not too much going on. Get ready though for the spring hiking season. I will be bringing you tons of assorted nonsense from the deep woods. For now enjoy some pics from today.

Devil's Den Weston, CT from Frank Fazio on Vimeo.

The Giant Stairs, Palisades Interstate Park

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 02:59:00 +0000

I'm baaaaaaack! Yes it has been a while since I last hit the trails but I was lucky enough to find a great new spot. Sunday was a perfect, and I mean perfect hiking day in the Northeast, 50 degrees with not a cloud in the sky. About 45 minutes from Stamford, CT is the Palisades Interstate Park. The Park has both a New Jersey section and a New York section. Check out Wikipedia for the full scoop. Me and my sister hit up a section called the Giants Stairs. A very cool scramble next to the Hudson River that was created by thousands of years of rock slides. It was an excellent 2 1/2 mile loop that had some challenging sections to keep you on your toes. We came across some good sites along the way as you shall see in the pics n videos including a Tales From The Trails first ever find! So without further ado enjoy the multimedia experience brought to you by Wandering Poet Productions!

Video Diary:

Photo slide show:

Bike & Hike to Mount Everett State Reservation

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 00:15:00 +0000

I finally did it today, combined a long ass cycle ride and did a little hiking as well. Today's destination was Mount Everett State Reservation which is in MA right near the NY/CT border. Next door to Everett is Mount Washington State Forest and Bash Bish Waterfalls. Basically there is a lot of hiking up here and plenty of scenic views. I am definitely coming back (with an SUV) to explore further. As you can see in the pics the Appalachian Trail cuts through here as well. Going up I took Route 22 in NY for most of the way. There were not too many places to really open up the bike but as I got close to my destination the scenery picked up a bit. Lots of mountains, farms, and stinky farm animals by the side of the road. As for hiking on Mt. Everett, it actually was not that great. The views from the summit were blocked by a lot of trees and brush. I think Mt. Washington has many more trails, however I learned the hard way that the "roads" around this area are basically wide hiking trails. I rode my street bike on about 12 miles of dirt and rocks going about 9 miles an hour just to get out of there. This happened because I decided to change it up a bit on the way home and go down Route 7 in CT instead of going back the way I went up. HUGE mistake. Like I said the roads back to civilization were all off-road. I kept saying to myself if I get a flat up here I am SOOOO screwed. After about 12 miles I finally got back on the real roads, and then the fun really started! I was up around Lime Rock, CT and up here the roads are twisty, wide, and empty. I was able to really open up the bike all the way down Kent, CT. This is a great area for motorcycle riding, and I easily saw over 100 bikes today, and most of them ended up stopping in Kent to get a bite to eat. Overall it was a good day. Right now I feel like I can ride about 120 miles total in a day, 200 was a little too much on an FZ1. My ass is NOT happy with me right now.
If you are interested in learning more check out these links:
Mount Everett
Mount Washington

No video highlights this week, just some pics. Enjoy!

Hook Mountain & Nyack Beach State Park

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 18:49:00 +0000

I finally was able to get out on the trails after a 5 month hiatus! Wow that's long but it was just too damn hot to hike. Until today that is. 75 degrees, sunny, with a nice cool breeze. Hiking season 2010 is in full effect.
I did a good tune up hike today at Hook Mountain in Nyack, NY. It's about 45 mins out of NYC, and 30 mins from my casa in Connecticut. The hike starts in Nyack Beach State Park. Just don't plan on bringing a towel and speedo's because there is no beach and swimming is not allowed, go figure. Hook Mountain is only about 700 feet up so it's not that challenging of a hike. It's a bird watchers haven as you will see from the video. Not too many creatures on this hike and after you get to the summit I suggest you walk a little farther to the edge of the cliffs. Once past that point it's mostly a long ass leisurely walk back to the car.
It was a 6 mile hike and took about 2 1/2 hours with a few pit stops to film and take pics. Overall a decent tune up hike or rookie hike that you can finish up by lunch time when you can then hit the quaint town of Nyack for some eats. More details regarding this hike can be found here:
Trail Description
Nyack Beach State Park

Of course my blog post would not be complete without videos. The first one is the video diary, the second one has pics with tunes. Enjoy.

Summer Safari

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:58:00 +0000

Hope everyone is having a great summer. I have not posted for a while because it's been too damn hot to hike! However my daughter and I went on a safari adventure that I thought I would share since it's been so long since my last post. Here is our video diary of our trip to Lion Country Safari. Hope you enjoy! And I also hope to get back in the woods real soon.

Mount Taurus (Bull Hill) Cold Spring New York

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 16:21:00 +0000

What up Ramblers? Sunday was an amazing day to hit the trails, so off we went back to the Hudson Highlands. This time we hit Mount Taurus (aka Bull Hill). It was a pretty steep 1,400 foot hike with great views of the Hudson River. The descent though was not that exciting, basically a stroll through the woods until......
Out of nowhere an abandoned estate showed up. There were 5-6 pretty big structures that were all beat up ruins. As you can see from the video we had no clue on the history of this place so I made sure I looked it up when I got home. It's called the Cornish Estate, and has been empty since the early 1900's. There doesn't seem to be any information on when it was built, only when it was abandoned. I found a good article about it online. You can view it here. After a long day of hiking you can head on over to Cold Spring Village about a 1/2 mile down the road. It's a great little town with a ton of small shops and restaurants right on the Hudson River. If interested in this hike you can get the details here.
Enjoy the vid! (some creatures make an appearance at the end)

Ward Pound Ridge Reservation & Leatherman's Cave

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 03:59:00 +0000

What a beautiful day in CT. I wasn't planning on hitting the trails but I ended up on a last minute local excursion to good old Ward Pound Ridge Reservation. Waayy back in the High School days we used to get a bunch of people and go camping up here. It was great times. Today I decided to actually explore it and see what the woods had to offer. I would not really call it hiking, more like a ramble in the woods. However, there were some interesting sights (and sounds) along the way. I don't want to give it all away but in this video you will find creatures, musical numbers, mystery, suspense, and assorted animal poo. Intrigued? I do want to mention Leatherman's Cave though. First of all calling it a cave is really a stretch. However the Leatherman does have an interesting story. To learn more click here. OK enough typing, enjoy the vid, it's a little longer than some of my others but hang in there, I think you will enjoy.

New Site Look

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:27:00 +0000

What up Ramblers? Spring is right around the corner in Connecticut. Last weekend was in the mid 50's and I was able to enjoy one of my other pleasures, motorcycle riding. I took out my FaZ1 (2006 Yamaha FZ1) for a nice ride. This year I plan on some longer rides and will start posting them up here as well. Who said tales from the trails only took place in the woods? This weekend is a washout so I decided to clean up the blog a bit. Besides the new colors, it's no longer narrow so I think it has a cleaner look. Finally it would not be a blog post unless I added a video. Here are some tales from the ice, my introduction to the word of Curling. Enjoy!

Kent Falls, CT Winter Wonderland

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 22:46:00 +0000

Surprise, Surprise. Bet you didn't think you were going to hear from me for another month or so. Well I missed you guys so much I decided to drive to upstate CT, freeze my ass off, and send you some assorted pics n' vids. Well kinda sorta. Actually me and my girl went to Kent, Ct for a little Bed & Breakfast getaway at the Fife n' Drum Inn. When we woke up we found out that no one was around until 11:30am to check out so we decided to drive up the road a bit to visit Kent Falls. I have been there a few times when it was warm out, but never in the dead of winter and needless to say it was FREEZING! However it was also beautiful and worth getting a slight case of frost bite on my fingers (OK it wasn't that cold). We were able to walk to the top, the path was in pretty good shape actually, snow but no ice. We drove around a little more and saw some of the usual sites, Bulls Bridge, Cornwall Covered Bridge, and of course it wouldn't be a complete trip without a wild turkey sighting. Back to the Fife n' Drum for a minute. Really nice place for a quick weekend getaway. We ate at their restaurant which had good eats and friendly peeps.
As usual I have pics n' vids to share. I didn't know what music I was going to use for the pics, but as I was editing everything the perfect song started to play on Pandora. Let me know if you agree. Seems like Youtube is not very pleased when I add music tracks to my pictures. They keep blocking the sound due to copyright issues. I have a work around but as you can see the pictures are much smaller and quality is lower. If you want the real experience I have a simple solution. Get you ass out on the trails so you can come home with your own tales!
Enjoy and see you again in a month or so!

Video Diary:

Picture Slideshow:

Anthony's Nose & The Camp Smith Trail

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:50:00 +0000

Happy Holidays fellow Ramblers. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving and are ready for some more winter festivities.
Last time I was out in the woods I was exploring the underworld. This past weekend I kept it above ground and headed up to Peekskill, NY where we did some hiking across the river from Bear Mountain. Very casual this time, just wanted to take advantage of the warm fall weather.
The trail we were on was called the Camp Smith Trail which, surprise, surprise, goes along the outer perimeter of Camp Smith which is a unit of the National Guard. As you can see from the pictures, the National Guard does not want you to stray too far off the trail. This blue blazed trail also links up with the AT at the top of Anthony's Nose. Why the hell is this mountain called Anthony's Nose? Well instead of just copying and pasting the answer you can find more info here.
This was a good day hike, it's also good for beginners. Total elevation is about 900 feet and there are some steep parts, but nothing too crazy. There were all ages of peeps roaming around. Full disclosure, I did wipe out a little going downhill because of all the leaves on the rocks. In regards to creatures, we did not see many, except for the Viper/Anaconda/Python which you can see in the slideshow. OK so maybe I exaggerated a bit and zoomed in a little with my camera.
Other than not too much to report. This whole area of the Hudson Highlands is great for hiking and there are so many options up here to keep coming back to. Check it out!
Well enjoy your winter people, I probably won't be back for a while unless there is a spontaneous snow hike I decide to go on. Enjoy the pictures, the Wandering Poet is OUT!

Southbounders Movie Review

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:00:00 +0000

Thought I would switch it up today a bit with a little movie review action. Last night on Netflix I watched an independent movie called Southbounders. It's your basic tale of a girl (Olivia) at the crossroads of life, please her daddy and go to college and be a doctor, or put that on hold to confront her fears and self confidence issues by hitting the trails for a 2,100 mile on the famous Appalachian Trail which goes from Maine to Georgia.
It's not a fast moving movie but the scenery is great and I really liked the soundtrack's vibe of hippie, mellow guitar rock. Perfect campfire music. You get to see and understand someone of the challenges one would have on such a long journey in the woods. Blisters, crappy weather, creatures going through your backpack, lack of hygiene, etc. Olivia also meets some characters along the way but there are two she ends up hiking with. Slackpack, the overweight funny guy who talks to much, and Rollin, who she starts to cozy up with.
I wish there would of been a little more action in this flix, I am sure they could of thought of a few things based on the subject matter of hiking over 2,000 miles in the woods. But this mostly a story about a girl with some inner issues she needs to figure out and the romance she starts up with Rollin. Hey I am not going to lie, this is normally not a movie for me, but since it was one of the few movies that co-starred the AT and I just came off a great hike over the weekend it was totally in my wheel house.
So if you love hiking, then yes this is a must see movie. If you are looking for a date movie or chick flix I would pass on this one and rent something like Love Actually (Widescreen Edition).
Wandering Poet review for Southbounders: 2 1/2 Blazes out of 4.
www.southbounders.com

Housatonic Range Trail

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 18:43:00 +0000

This is the final post about this past Sunday's hike. Let's call it the ABOVE ground chapter. After exploring the cave we hiked the southern portion of the Housatonic Range Trail. It was only about a 2.5 mile hike to the summit of Candlewood Mountain (902 feet) but since there were so many different rock formations that had a ton of moss on them it made the trek a little sketchy at some points. Especially Kelly's Slide (not in video) which is a huge slanted slab of rock. There was a large tree down going across it and that was the only thing stopping you from sliding down over a cliff. VERY SKETCHY! Pic of it can be seen here.
Enjoy the vid!

Spelunking at Tory's Cave New Milford, CT

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:15:00 +0000

Here is a brief video of us checking out the caves. From what I was told we only did a portion of it, there were another 3-4 rooms to explore. Will save that for next time. Enjoy!

Tory's Cave & Housatonic Range Trail

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 01:51:00 +0000

Oh what a day! Perfect fall weather and not a cloud in the sky. It's trail time! My sister and I went up to Tory's Cave and Housatonic Range Trail near New Milford, CT. Neither of us had any idea what we were getting ourselves in to (literally). When we got to the opening of the cave we both said no way in hell were we going to go down there. But then a few other spelunkers showed up and we couldn't look like skirts so down we went. The caves were very cool and the hike up to Candlewood Mountain was great too. Not many views but a ton of rock structures that were great to climb. We hiked 3 miles of the trail which is about a total of 6 miles. Next time up there we will finish it off (and hit the caves one more time). Today I have a photo slide show but over the next few days I will put all the video clips together so you can really understand what went down and where we went. I am happy to report that there were no bat sightings!
Enjoy the entertainment. Click on the HQ button (should be red) for better quality playback.

Fall Hiking Season in full effect!!

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:48:00 +0000

What up Ramblers?? The Wandering Poet is back from the dead. Had a great summer, no complaints there, but the weather has gotten a bit cooler and its time to get back in the woods damn it!!!

So this past weekend was PERFECT hiking weather, 70 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. A great time for a warm up hike at good old Bear Mountain State Park in NY. I brought my girl Dianis with me, she's a little new to the woods and at first it was a bit touch and go but she got a second wind and we made it to the top without a problem. This season I am going to be focusing on new trails in NY so stay tuned. I have my new super zoom HD camera ready to shoot as many creatures I can possibly come across. So get your ass out there this fall, that's what DVR's are for. Enjoy the quick vid of the trip.

Sleeping Giant Video Diary

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:36:00 +0000

What does doo-wop, classic cars, nuns, and mountains have in common? Normally nothing unless you hike Sleeping Giant on Memorial Day. Check out the video diary to see what I mean.

Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden CT

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 25 May 2009 20:32:00 +0000

Hope you enjoyed your Memorial Day. Weather was perfect in Connecticut so me and my sis decided to hit the trails. Didn't go to crazy today. We headed up to Sleeping Giant in Hamden, CT right across the street from Quinnipiac College where there was a Classic Car show taking place. So between the crowds on the trails and the booming doo-wop music from below the wilderness factor was at an all time low. It's a pretty challenging hike though, especially the begininig when you hike up very steep trap rock next to a huge quarry. The Tower at the 740 foot summit offers amazing views. I didn't take too many videos but I will still post them tomorrow. In the meantime enjoy the picture slide show. The music selection and product placement is purely coincidental......

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What's in my pack? Day Hike Essentials

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Sun, 24 May 2009 23:22:00 +0000

Happy Memorial Day fellow Ramblers. It the Wandering Poet Frankie Faz with a behind the scenes webisode of TalesFromTheTrails. As promised here is the "What's in my pack" segment I mentioned a few weeks ago. Check out the items you should bring along when you venture out in the woods. On a side note I apologize in advance for the lens cap that makes numerous appearances in the video. I upgraded my camera and am still getting used to recording with it. The old one didn't have a lens cap to get in the way. I bought a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 10 MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom and Super Steady Shot Image Stabilization
I have much more zoom and the ability to record HD video. So now I can get you guys up close and personal with creatures without having to actually get up close and personal with creatures.

Well enjoy the vid. Next hike will be Sleeping Giant in Hamden CT. I have hiked this one a few times but never had the chance to record it for the blog. Have a great rest of the weekend, and get your ass outside!

Mystery Solved-Black Rat Snake, NOT a Rattler!

noreply@blogger.com (Frank) — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:00:00 +0000

"OK he is hidden in the grass but you get the idea. Jumped right in front of me and was at least 6 feet long. When he was hiding in the grass his rattler was rattlin' real loud! I decided it was then time to move along. Click on the pic for a high resolution view where you really will be able to see him. If you are getting this post via email or RSS feed click HERE to go to the site."

So the above text is what I wrote in the heat of the moment. Some days have gone by, I have now calmed down, and have had some time to research what kind of snake I saw. The answer my friend is the Black Rat Snake. After reading about it I have learned a few things.
A: NOT venomous (whew!). NY has three venomous snakes, timber rattlesnake, the massasauga, and the copperhead. The good news is that they are all very rare.
B: I did not exaggerate when I estimated the size was 6 feet. These guys can grow up to 8 feet!
C. I also wasn't lying when I said it's tail was rattling because these snakes do vibrate their tails to mimic the sound of the rattle snake. Congrats Mr. Snake, your tail vibrating did it's job and scared the crap out of me!
OK so I feel a little safer going in the woods knowing most of these guys are not venomous. So lets make a pact creatures of the woods, don't mess with me & I won't mess with you. This includes all you wild chickens and turkeys out there too!

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